Fast-food chain operations are structured around a sales team hierarchy. The fast-food industry's high rate of employee turnover on the front line makes it necessary for fast-food restaurants to have solid training systems and clear workplace structures in place. Front-line sales associates can work their way up through the ranks of a fast-food chain, going from team leaders to shift supervisors, store managers and eventually regional managers. Understanding the basic fast-food sales team structure can provide insight into how these highly efficient restaurants operate.

Sales Associates

Sales associates are the front-line sales team members responsible for running cash registers, manning the drive-through window, cooking orders and keeping restaurants clean. Fast-food sales associate positions have very low entrance requirements, making them good jobs for high school students or people seeking immediate temporary employment. Sales associates usually start off close to minimum wage, and can work their way up to around $8 per hour based on performance and length of service.

Shift Supervisors

Shift supervisors sit one step up in the sales team hierarchy. Shift supervisors perform the same range of duties required of associates, but their main role is to ensure that all employees have the tools, guidance and motivation they need to run their individual work stations. Shift supervisors are responsible for handling complex issues that arise on the job, including refund requests and dealing with difficult patrons. Supervisors can also be responsible for ensuring that time card information is filled out accurately and reliably by all employees.

Shift supervisor positions include slightly tighter requirements than front-line associates. It is still possible to obtain a shift supervisor position without a high school diploma or GED, because fast-food companies often fill these positions internally based on front-line employees' performance and experience.

Store Manager

Shift supervisors report directly to store managers, who are responsible for overseeing the business aspects of an entire sales outlet. Store managers are actively involved in hiring, firing and compensation decisions, as well as setting the tone for the unique cultures of their stores. Store managers generally either lead by example or coercion to ensure front-line employees follow all company policies, but they are rarely involved in day-to-day supervision. Additional store manager tasks include purchasing, budgeting and auditing inventory for their stores.

Store manager positions require a high school diploma or GED at minimum, and may require an associate's or bachelor's degree in some companies. Store manager job applicants are required to have several years of restaurant management experience under their belt or a long history of excellent performance within the company. Store managers can expect to bring in around $35,000 per year.

Regional Manager

Regional managers oversee all of the store managers within a particular sales territory. Smaller, independent fast-food restaurants may not have enough outlets to merit a regional manager, but a regional manager becomes a vital asset when a fast-food company grows to about three stores. Regional managers provide strategic guidance to ensure that all store managers are on the same page with customer service objectives, sales goals and marketing strategies. Regional managers often use valuable incentives to get store managers to compete with one another to reach performance objectives, creating a trickle-down motivation effect throughout the sales team structure. Regional managers can earn upwards of $60,000 annually.

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About the Author

David Ingram has written for multiple publications since 2009, including "The Houston Chronicle" and online at Business.com. As a small-business owner, Ingram regularly confronts modern issues in management, marketing, finance and business law. He has earned a Bachelor of Arts in management from Walsh University.